The Unsustainable Math of Medicare Cuts to Physician Payments

Let me get this out of the way: Yes, physicians earn a very good living. Many, if not most, physicians make way more money than the overwhelming majority of the population. In fact, many specialists make way more than the President of the United States.

In order to make that money, however, it takes literally decades of schooling and many years of training, racking up hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. In order to become a specialist, it can take more than half a decade of training to get there. It is not an easy path.

And, it is also true that primary care physicians are among the least paid of the profession. Primary care physicians are the bulwark of the healthcare system, the load bearing walls of our field, and it is truly unfortunate that, sometimes, they can make less than many other professionals.

Having said all of that, it is also true that the latest rounds of physician pay cuts announced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are quite distressing and truly unsustainable.

Read the rest at https://healthcaremusings.substack.com/p/the-unsustainable-math-of-medicare